Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Literature Discussion with Full Participation IV

Question: What is one
way for the English teacher to organize a discussion of literary works?

Summary of How
to Organize Literary Discussions for Full Participation

Based
on my experience in working with students, I had to make several modifications
to the Great Books discussion technique. I introduced the students to the
literary work in an attempt to motivate them to read it, and the students, not
the discussion leaders, posed questions about what they did not understand.

Raising
questions about poems and previewing short stories and novels to raise
questions in class virtually assured that all students had been exposed to the
literary work. Since many of the students participated in raising the
questions, they also become involved in the discussion

The
activities that lead to full participation in literary discussions are students’
speculating about the puzzling meaning of poems, short stories and novels and
by my asking the questions, ‘What do you know?’ and ‘What don’t you
understand?’

Following
students’ discussion of what they do not understand, teacher and text book
questions might be introduced, and, if available, literary criticism can be
read to compare students’ and professional critics’ interpretation.